VEXOS Inc. is a Global Electronics Manufacturing Services (EMS) provider. Today they announced they signed an agreement with the Government of Canada to manufacture 10,000 Mechanical Ventilator Milano (MVM) units in the national mobilization to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Government of Canada’s continuing support for companies producing critical medical supplies will enable Vexos to manufacture and deliver these much-needed ventilators that will assist in the treatment of patients affected by the COVID-19 virus.
Navdeep Bains, Minister of Innovation, Science, and Industry today stated: “Throughout this period of crisis, we continue to see Canadian companies across the country making tremendous contributions to fight COVID-19. The story of Dr. Art McDonald, his team, and Vexos is one of true innovation. These new, easy to build ventilators are a great example of Canadian innovation at work and will be a key resource for our hospitals to save lives.”
“We are extremely honored to be working with an international group of innovators who were able to design and develop the MVM Ventilator in a very short timeframe. The order from the Government of Canada is a testament to not only international collaboration, but also collaboration within Canada between governmental, institutional, and business entities focused on delivering rapid solutions in national mobilization efforts against the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Paul Jona, CEO & President of Vexos. “During these challenging times, it’s important that we contribute where we can to assist our communities. Delivering the MVM Ventilator to support Canada’s mobilization against the COVID-19 pandemic is a clear indication of our commitment.”
“We created a task force to coordinate with our international, national and local partners since March in preparing extra manufacturing capacity and an increased supply chain pipeline to meet the expected demand for the MVM Ventilator,” said Wayne Hawkins, SVP & General Manager for Vexos Markham. “We are proud to support Canada in the effort to fight the COVID-19 pandemic.”
The MVM Ventilator, developed by the International MVM Group, is an innovative, simple but powerful ventilator designed to address the specific needs for the care and recovery of severely affected COVID-19 patients. The International MVM group, led by Professor Cristiano Galbiati, originated through an international consortium of Italian, US, and Canadian physicists, engineers, and companies in early March 2020 working collaboratively across the globe to bring the MVM Ventilator from project initiation to FDA approval in a span of 6 weeks. Achieving this result in such a short time was made possible thanks to the cooperation of laboratories, institutes, universities, and companies mainly across Italy, Canada, and the United States, maximizing the benefits that come from sharing skills and resources.
The Canadian arm of the International MVM Group is led by Queen’s University Professor Emeritus, Dr. Art McDonald, a co-recipient of the 2015 Nobel Prize in Physics. The Canadian group includes national laboratories and institutes: SNOLAB, TRIUMF, McDonald Institute and Canadian Nuclear Laboratories (CNL). Dr. McDonald said, “I have enjoyed working with such a skilled and dedicated team of scientists and engineers, including our Canadian manufacturing partners, in this humanitarian effort. Everyone is strongly motivated to make a difference in this difficult situation for Canada and the rest of the world.”
Vexos will build the MVM Ventilator under an exclusive license agreement with Elemaster Group for the Americas (North, Central, and South America).
Vexos is also working closely with JMP Solutions, a London, Ontario company that specializes in industrial robotics, control systems, and systems automation in the manufacture of the MVM Ventilator. “We are honored to be collaborating with Vexos and the MVM team in the manufacture of the MVM Ventilator to support our national mobilization efforts against the COVID-19 pandemic,” stated Scott Shawyer, President and CEO of JMP Solutions.
The MVM Ventilator which has received FDA approval in the US (under Emergency Use Authorization) will be undergoing Health Canada review for approval under the provisions of the Interim Order issued on March 30, 2020 respecting the importation and sale of medical devices for use in relation to COVID-19. Deliveries of units are expected to commence in July 2020.